Folding method and article produced thereby



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Dec. 1i, 1928.

Patented 11, 1928.

UNITED; STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ANDREW R. IRIDIDIl1`\,S'll3-O]!l1,Y 0F NAHANT, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNORTO BEACON FOLDING MACHIN E COMPANY, 0F LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS, ACORPORATION OF MAS- sAcnUsEmrs.

FOLDUWGTMETHOD AND ARTICLE PRODUCED THEBEBY'.

l original' application -nied'nme 24, 1921, serm No. 4sn,1r7.` nivzaedand this appiimion and timber 7, 1922, serial no. 605,374.

The present invention relates to methods of folding the margins offlexible sheet material, like shoe uppers, and pressing the folds or thelike so formed and to articles produced by such methods. The inventionis illustrated and described herein in connection with the folding andpressing of a binding strip around the edge of a boot or shoe upper towhich it is attached, as in a copending application, Serial No. 480,177,tiled June 2l, 1921,

of which the present application is a division.

In the manufacture of bcots, and shoes it has been common practice tofinish 'the edge of a part of a shoe upper by securing tozone face ofthe part, along an edge thereof, a strip of binding, then to coat thestrip with a cement which is normally wet and sticky and then to' foldthe free ortion of the strip progressively around tie edge of the shoepart and press it down upon the margin of the other face of said part.-Cement of the type referred to, owing to its liquid character, is liableto become smeared more or less upon the shoe part; and besides, remainssticky only for a limited interval during which, of course, the foldingand pressing must take place.

According to a feature of the present invention a binding strip coatedwith a cement which is normally dry and non-sticky, but may be renderedsticky by the application to it of heat, is used; and heat is appliedprogressively to the str-ip to liquefy or render the cement sticky. Thismethod is not only much cleaner than the old, wet-cement method; but

vis much more convenient in that the dry-ce- -mented work may be allowedto stand for an indefinite interval before being operated upon.

In the machine, chosen for illustration, by the use. of which adry-cemented strip may be folded in accordance with the present invention, the strip is first acted upon by a wiper, after which it istightly gripped and pulled tight between a feed point and a plow. It. isthen folded over upon the leath'er sheet to which it is attached, beingfinally pressed down by a fold presser, the last-named element beingmaintained at a temperature. sufficient to render the dry cement sticky.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a view in elevation, partly in longitudinalsection, and with parts omitted, of a machine by the use of whichdry-cemented work. may be folded;

Renewed March 24, 1926 Fig. 2 is a plan `of the forward portion of themachine; Fig. 3 is a section of a .shoe upper, showing an unfoldedbinding strip attached thereto; Fig. 4 is a section similar to -Fig. 3,showing the binding strip in finally looking in the direction of thearrows.

The invention is illustrated inthe accom-4 panying drawings inconnection with the folding of a binding strip 2, of cloth, silk and thelike, around the edge 4 of a sheet of leather or other material 6, suchas a boot or shoe upper. An edge 8 of the binding strip is sewed at 12to a face 10 of the shoe upper along the edge 4, so that the sheet andthe strip extend at an anule to each other from the secure d-togetheredges 4 and 8. It will be understood that the invention is equallyapplicable to other articles than that which is herein chosen forpurpses of illustration, and

the elements of the article need not necessarily be of the relativedimensions shown. It may be desirable, for example, to fold an elementof relatively large dimension over theedge of an element of relativelysmall dimension. For definiteness, the element that is to be folded willhereinafter be referred to in the specific-ation and the claims as thestrip7 and the element about the edge of which the strip is to be foldedwill be hereinafter referred to as the sheet. stock, upper, work, etc.,though the adopted terminology may not be strictly applicable to thespecic article which may be under consideration.

The shoe upper is initially placed upon platform or support 24, Figs. 2and 5, with the face 10 of the upper in contact with the support. An endof the free or unsecured edge 26 of the strip 2 is initially movedacross and around the secured-together edges 4 and 8, and into the spacebetween an interior side, face 28 of a preferably toothed feed point 30and aplow 32 that stands up intergrally from a plate 34. The machinebeine set into operation. successive portions of t e unsecured edge orportion of the stri 2, near the stitches 12, arelint-ermittentl wlpedtightly across the secured-together e ges4 and 8, or

away fromI thestitches, as shown` more par ticularly at 36, Fig. 4, bythe combined ae tion -of a wiper 38 and a retainer 153 that presses downheavily at this time upon the upper directly opposite to the point ofaction the wiper. .It is very important to the subsequent operation thatthe Astripbe' wiped very tightly. The retainer-operating mechanism willnot be described herein as it forms no essential part of the presentinvention. The retainer is provided with teeth 232, the

more firmly to hold the stock. In order to` enable the wiper 38 tooperate, the strip 2 is 'progressively moved lightly or loosely byscribed in Letters Patent No. 1,527,396, grant-` ed February 24, 1925.The plow-folded portions of the strip are grip ed intermittently betweenthe interior side ace 28, Fig. 6, of

i the feed point and the plow 32, becoming of the strip further an 42 isdescribed in the thereby pulled tightly. The intermittent wiping, andfolding and gripping operations arey performed upon the successiveportions of the strip alternately during successive pauses in the feed.The plow folded portions are advanced by the feed vpoint and acooperatin grally with the plow 32 u on a plate 34, to a combined folderand fol presser 42. The fold presser 42 folds the (plow-folded portionspresses them down against the other face 16 of the sheet, as shown inFig. 4. The preferred fold presser said Letters Patent and in LettersPatent No. 1,527,395, also granted February 24, 1925. These operationsare y continued 'in timed relation toY one another until the wholestrip' has become folded, as

, describedmore fullyin the said Letters Patl hesive in' this vdry entNo. 1,527,396. eference is made to the said Letters Patent fora fullerdescription of so much of the machine as is not fully disclosed herein,because unnecessary to an unjderstandingof the present invention.

The preferred wiper 38 is also fully def scribed m the Said LettersPatent No. 1,527,1-

396, and need not, therefore, be further de-` .scrihed here.

The Strip is ary/.cemented Wahine ad. -cemented condition the i strip 2cannot adhere to the sheet 6. By heat ing the fold presser during thefoldfpressing action, the 'dry cement will become liquefied,

and the parts so caused to adhere together.

An electrical heating unit4 55() is shown mounted in position in an oilcup 552 of the fold-presser cylindrical bearing 158. This constructionprovides a very compact, heated feed block 41, that is carried intefoldpresser. A thermostat 554,*Fig. 1, maintains the temperature of the foldpresser within predetermined limits through causing the making andbreaking of contact members 556. The thermostat, contact members andwiring connections are contained within abox 558 mounted'upon a bracket560 secured to the frame of the machine, as shown in Fig. 2.

Manyv parts of the illustrative machine have been very briev described,or not dey scribed at all, because not essential to an un-l derstandingof the present invention, and because other such parts are well known inmachines of the prior art. A fuller understanding of the illustrativeparts ma be had by referring to the above-mentione application andLetters Patent, though many parts ent No. 1,527,396 and Witha particularkind l of work, therefore, it will be understood that this is forillustrative purposes only, and that the invention is of broader scope,unlimited exce t in so far as limitations may be specifically imposed inthe appended clanns.

The machine which has been shown and described above is not hereinclaimed but forms the 'subject-matter of coending application Serial No.740,735, file September 30, 1924, which, like the present application,is a division of application Serial No. 480,177., filed June 24, 1921.

What is claimed is:

1. The method of folding a dry-cemented strip around the edge of a sheetof material to one f aceof which, along said edge, an 'edge of the stripis secured so that the sheet and Inu the strip extend'frorn thesecured-together edges at an angle to each other, said method comprisingmoving the dry-cemented strip across and around said secured-togetheredges, pressing the strip into even contact with the other face of thesheet, and heating the strip' while pressing it to liquefy the cement.

2. The method of folding a dry-cemented strip around the ed e of a sheetof material to one face of which, a ong said edge, an edge of the stripis secured so that the sheet and the strip extend from thesecured-together edges other face of the sheet, .and heating the foldedportions while pressing them to liquefy the cement.

3. The method of folding a dry-cemented strip around the edgeof a sheetof material to one face of which, along the said edge, an edge -ius ofthe strip is secured so that the sheet and the strip extend from thesecured-together edges at an angle to each other, the `said methodcomprising'feeding the sheet and the strip step by step, moving portionsof the unsecured edge of the strip across the secured-l together edgesduring pauses in the feed, folding the moved portions aroundthesecured-together edges during pauses in the feed subsequent to thepauses during which they were moved across the secured-together edges,pressing the foldedportions in to even contact with the other face ofthe sheet, and

heating the folded portions while pressing them to liquef the cem-ent.

4. The met od of folding materialthat comprises progressivel foldingsuccessive portions of the materia with a cement interposed between thefolded portions of the material, the cement being normally in suchc'onditionthatitisineffective to cause the folded portions of thematerial to adhere together, rendering the cement effective, andpressing the folded portions of the material together.

5. The method of folding material that comprises feeding the material,foldin at a predetermined position in the line o feed successiveportions ofthe material with a cement interposed between the foldedportions of the material, the cement being normally in such conditionthat it -is ineffective to cause the folded portions of the material toadhere together, rendering the cement effective, and pressing the foldedportions of thematerial together.

6. The method of folding material a portion of which is provided with acement in such condition that it is normally ineffective to cause thefolded portions of the material to adhere together, the said methodcomprisin progressively folding successivev portions o the material withthe cement interposed between the folded portions of the material,

Vrendering the cement effective, and pressing the folded portions of thematerial together.

7. The method of folding material a margin of which is provided with acement that is normally in such condition that it is ineffective tocause the said margin to adhere to' the body of the material, the saidmethod' comprising progressively folding successive' portions of thesaid margin over upon the body of the materialwith the cementinterposedbetween the said margin and the said body, rendering` the cementeffective, and pressing `the folded marginalportions and the said bodytogether. n

8. The method of folding material a margin of which is provided with acement that is normally in such condition that'it -is ineffective tocause the said margin to adhere to the body of the material, the saidmethod comprising feeding the material, folding at a predeterminedposition in the lineof feed successive portions of the said margin overupon the body ofthe material with the cement interposed between the saidmargin and the said body, renderin the cement effective, and pressingthe olded marginal portions and the v'said body together. v 9. Themethod of folding a strip around the edge of a sheet ofmaterial to onefaceof which, along the said edge, 'the strip is secured, the saidmethod comprising progressively folding successive portions of the striparound the said edge with. a cement interposed between the strip and thesheet, the cement being normally in such condition that it isineffective to cause the strip to adhere to the sheet, rendering thecement effective and pressing the folded strip and the sheet together.

10. The method of folding material a por- -tion of which is dr `cementedthat comprises' progressively folding successive portions of thematerial with the dry cement interposed between the folded portions ofthe material,

liquefyingthe dry cement, and pressing the gin` and the said bodyportion, applying heat to the 'said margin to liquefy the d cement, andpressing the folded marginali the said body portion together. 1

.12. The method of folding material a margin of which is dry-cementedthatv com rises feeding the material, folding at a pre eterminedposition in the line of feed successive portionsofthe dry-cementedmargin over upon the body portion of the material with the dry cementinterposed between the said portions of the mar in and the said bodyportion,..

liquefyin t e dry cement, and pressing the successive y folded marginalportions and the said Body portion together.

13. The method of operating upon a piece of work consisting of a pieceof sheet material to one face of which along an edge thereof adry-cemented binding strip is attached' which comprises foldingsuccessive portions of the strip into position to be pressed against`the other face ofthe material, pressing thev folded portions.s'successively against said` other face and a Aplying heatprogressively to the strip to liq efy the cement;

14. The method of operating upon a piece of Work consisting of apiece ofsheet material to one face of which along an edge thereof a dry-cementedbinding strip is attached which comprises progressively-bendingsuccessive portions of the` strip,- applying heat progressively to' thesuccessively ent portions and pressing them againstthe other face ofthesheet. t

15. The method of finishing a shoev upper that comprises coating amargin of the upper with an adhesive that is normally in such conditionthat it is ineffective to cause the said margin -to adhere to the bodyoithe upper, folding the said margin over upon the ody of the upper withthe adhesive interposed between the said margin and the said body,rendering the adhesive effective, and pressing the fol-ded margin andthe said body portion together. v

'16. The method of making shoe uppers whichcomprises coating withadhesive material one side of a strip,sewingy a margin of the coatedstrip to one face of the marginal portion of the upper, the coatingbeing condi with which it contacts, folding t to the opposite face ofthe marginal portion of the upper.vw

17. As an article of manufacture7 asheet i of material and a stristitched together along juxtaposed edges, t e strip being coated with anadhesive that is normally condi#I tioned so as not to stick to surfaceswith which it contacts, the strip being adapted to be folded over theedge of the sheet and pressed into contact with the sheet, and theadhesive being adapted to be rendered sticky to cause the folded andpressed strip to adhere to the sheet.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 4th day ofDecember,

ANDREW R. RIDDERSTROM.

l l 1e strip over the edge of the upper; and causing the adhesive coatedportion of the strip to adhere

